A native of Ramseur, NC, Bill Allen attended Wake Forest University where he participated in study away programs in Venice, Italy and Dijon,
France. He completed his MA and doctoral
work at UNC-CH, where his dissertation was on literary dandyism in the
works of Théophile Gautier. Before coming to Furman in 1987, he also
taught at the Université Paul Valéry in Montpellier, France, and
Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA.

Allen has often served the department as French coordinator; he has also
served as recorder of the faculty and on numerous university,
administrative and ad-hoc committees, including stints as chair of
Appeals and Faculty Status. He was chair of MLL from
2007 to 2016.

In addition to diverse teaching duties which have included Italian,
Humanities, and continuing education courses as well as French classes
at all levels, Allen has been a frequent director or co-director of
study away programs at UNC (Quebec, Montpellier),
Dickinson (Toulouse) and Furman (Versailles, Summer China Experience,
Slow Food Italy).

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Faculty Courses Taught

Name

Title

Description

FRN-110

Elementary French I

Introduction to the sound system and grammatical structure necessary to develop listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills in French. An appreciation of French-speaking culture underlies the orientation of the course.

FRN-201

Intermediate French I

Continuation of the development of proficiency in listening and speaking, while expanding the reading and writing skills using materials of a literary or cultural nature.

FRN-210

Intro to French Readings

Builds upon and further enhances the basics developed through the first intermediate course. Reading numerous short works of fiction and nonfiction and through discussions and short written assignments in French, expanding the critical listening, speaking, reading, writing, vocabulary and cultural skills necessary for further study.

FRN-214

French Conversation

Intense oral practice focusing on practical daily use as well as discourse on Francophone cultures and events with an emphasis on current, everyday speech. A variety of sources are used to develop listening and communication skills; improve fluency in speaking French; build vocabulary; and familiarize students with appropriate linguistic register. An introduction to French phonetics is included.

FRN-215

French Composition

Development of advanced writing skills in French with emphasis on advanced grammar structures, organization, idiomatic expressions, vocabulary building, and rhetorical strategies. A variety of sources are used to refine the ability to write in different genres for different occasions.

FRN-332

French Lit & Civilization II

An interdisciplinary introduction to French civilization, literature and fine arts from 1600 to 1800.

FRN-333

French Lit & Civilization III

An interdisciplinary introduction to French civilization, literature and fine arts of the 19th and 20th centuries, including authors of the Francophone world.

FRN-415

French Romanticism

Selected works of the principal literary figures of the first half of the nineteenth century in France. Poetry, prose fiction, and drama included.

FRN-430

Studies in French Literature

In-depth focus on a period, movement, author, genre, or theme. Possible topics might include the French lyric tradition, exoticism, narratives of childhood, etc. May be repeated for credit based on change of topic.

ITL-101

Beginning Italian

Introduction to the sound system and grammatical structure necessary to develop listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills in Italian. An appreciation of Italian culture underlies the orientation of the course.

Faculty Tab 3 description

Our mission in the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures is to
give our students the tools to communicate with, interpret and
understand countries, cultures and people both beyond
and within American borders: in short, to make of them cosmopolitan
citizens of the world.

To reach this goal, I believe students need to engage in a dialectic
process involving both hard work (usually through intensive, solitary,
cognitive activity) and lived experience (often in memorable group
settings engaging all the senses at once). (I sometimes
sum this up as "Work Hard, Play Hard"). The former tends to occur in
formal, campus-based classes; the latter in study away experiences, but
neither form of learning is exclusive to one setting. The modern
language teacher's goal should be to excite the curiosity
of the students as they learn, read, and think; and then to bring them
to spaces (classroom, café, museum, homestay, landscape, etc.) where
they can confront new things beyond their previous experience and
develop means to cope, communicate, and finally to
understand. In this way they proceed toward discovery of world and self.

Faculty Tab4 description

Allen's dissertation and subsequent work examined the figure of the dandy as a
literary character and narrator in the works of Baudelaire, Balzac,
Barbey d'Aurevilly and particularly Gautier.
Other interests have included Gautier's travel literature, the poetic
imagery of Victor Hugo, political perspectives in 19th century French
writers, and 20th century French history. More recently, he has been a
frequent presenter at regional conferences on
the novels of Irène Némirovsky and the resistance literature of Vercors.
In addition to other publications, numerous book reviews by Allen have
appeared in French Review and other journals.

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